Wednesday, 14 September 2016

Smile! whitening kit & electric toothbrush review

I'm generally a pretty happy person and smile easily; to make people feel at ease, to make myself feel at ease, to show how I feel and to express who I am as a person.

I don't have the best teeth (despite having a brace briefly in my teens) and I'm pretty sure my smile is lopsided, by my smile is just that - my smile, and it's part of who I am. Even Ethan's starting to mimic my smile (he has my dimples too) and will tell me to smile if he thinks I'm sad or to make us both feel happier. It's so sweet.

The last time I really thought about my smile was before I got married, six years ago (this weekend). I remember buying a teeth whitening kit as a way to make me feel more confident. Sometimes, it's the little things that can make a difference, isn't it?

I recently heard about a new teeth whitening kit from Australia's number one tooth whitening brand, White Glo, and was keen to try it out so I could brighten up my smile. I love my tea and coffee, a little too much perhaps, and red wine too, all of which we know can stain your teeth. I've gotten over my fear of dentists and have been a few times in the past three years, where they have given me a scale and polish to clean things up, but I wanted to try a treatment at home to make a quick difference should I need it.

I was sent a Diamond Series kit and started using it right away. It takes just five minutes per application and you use it for seven days to see the benefit.

What I was pleased to learn is that the kit isn't abrasive and doesn't contain peroxide.

Here's what White Glo has to say about the system and how it works:

The revolutionary, fast and effective whitening formula provides not only brighter, whiter teeth but also longer lasting results. The advanced formulation lifts stains and removes yellowing on the surface of your tooth enamel safely – without abrasion.

Following years of research by dentists, the White Glo products are formulated with the same ingredients used by dentists in clinics to achieve fast effective results.

The Diamond Series product is perfect to use in the shower as it is developed with just a 5 minute application. The new mouth tray system incorporates the exclusive Instant-Fit mouth tray. There is no need to mould the mouth trays, they are instantly ready to use and will form to the shape of your teeth instantly. The extra comfortable mouth trays allow you to whiten both upper and lower at the same time.

Each pack comes with a free full size White Glo Professional Choice Toothpaste. This is the original and most popular whitening toothpaste from White Glo, which has been rated No. 1 most effective whitening toothpaste by an independent trial and has the Seal of Approval from the Australian Dental Association.

Sounds good, right?

The kit is easy to follow and within a minute, I knew how to use it and was giving it a go. There's a tube of gel that you squeeze into the tray, top and bottom, then you place it in your mouth and bite down gently, leaving for five minutes.

After the first go, you work out how much gel to use and the advice is to not brush your teeth immediately beforehand, so your gums aren't sensitised.

When the time is up, you take out the tray, rinse with water then use the toothpaste included. It's a weird sensation, having the gel on your teeth, but it quickly rinses away and you're done, within seven minutes, start to finish.

The toothpaste is quite mild and doesn't feel gritty and overall, the treatment didn't bother me at all. After, my gums did feel slightly sensitive, but nothing uncomfortable and it quickly passed.

Before - silly face!

Whilst I smile readily, I wasn't too keen to share big close up photos of before and after my White Glo trial, but from what I can see, and what you may be able to tell, my teeth do look cleaner and whiter.

After

After - really cheesy grin!

Overall, I've found the kit easy to use, it's made a noticeable difference and it's really good value (RRP £14.99, currently £9.99 at Boots) as you'll get several uses out of this, not just one week of applications (35 individual sessions, to be exact). I don't think that anything will have as much an impact as a visit to the dentist for a professional clean and removal of plaque, but if you're not so keen, want to keep on top of your teeth whitening or have a special occasion, then the White Glo kit is a great system to try.

***

Keeping with the teeth theme, I've also been trying out a new toothbrush. Never one to buy anything fancy when it comes to this, I was kindly sent a new electric toothbrush that's great for travel and taking away with you.

SONIC Chic is a colourful collection of portable electric toothbrushes that vibrate to deliver the equivalent of 22,000 brushstrokes per minute. That's way more than I can brush my teeth with a standard brush, for sure! They also come in some fun colours and patterns, which is always nice to have a choice of.

I have one of the SONIC Chic DELUXE toothbrushes, which can deliver 32,000 brushstrokes a minute and can be charged by USB, so really convenient when on the go.

It's really clever too; the blue strip on the head fades when it's time to replace the head, there's two speed settings plus a two minute timer so you can be sure to use it for the ideal brushing time. I always find it's hard to keep track of how long you brush for, so I particularly like this feature.

I really like the design and the close cap makes it perfect for packing when we go away for the night or longer. The head is also small, so you can target each tooth in turn easily, and it does make you feel like you're getting a good clean.

All in all, it's a staple in my travel bag (so I don't forget to pack one!) but may just become my main toothbrush too.

The SONIC Chic URBAN is priced around £20, including AAA battery (great, it's good to go), and the SONIC Chic DELUXE £30, with an extra head and USB charger added), from places such as Boots, Tesco and LookFantastic.co.uk, so it's a bit more of an investment but not too much considering the look and performance.

* I was sent a Diamond Series kit and a SONIC Chic DELUXE toorthbrush separately for the purposes of review but all opinions are my own.